30% ruling ending in 2026 or 2027? Calculate your new net salary
If your 30% ruling is approaching its end date, the change in your monthly take-home pay can be significant. This will typically be €500 to €1,500 less per month, depending on your salary. Below you’ll see exactly what your net income looks like with and without the ruling, when your benefit officially ends, and the four practical options you have to soften the impact (or avoid it altogether).
Quick answer
The 30% ruling now lasts a maximum of 5 years from your start date (down from 8 years for rulings granted before 2024). When it ends, your full gross salary becomes taxable, which typically reduces your monthly net income by 15% to 25%. For someone earning €80,000, that’s roughly €1,000 less per month. From 2027, the benefit also drops from 30% to 27% for new and existing rulings, lowering net income further.
Your options: negotiate a gross-up with your employer, switch to a ZZP/freelance structure (which often nets more than employment), restructure your finances (pension, savings, mortgage), or get a personalized advisor review. Use the calculator below to see your own before-and-after numbers.
When does your 30% ruling actually end?
Your end date is set the moment your ruling is approved. Two rules apply:
- If you got your ruling on or after 1 January 2024, it lasts up to 5 years.
- If you got your ruling before 2024, it still lasts up to 8 years, the new 5-year limit doesn’t apply to you.
You can find your exact start and end date on the letter (beschikking) you received from the Belastingdienst when your ruling was approved. Your employer also has this date.
One thing many expats miss: any time you already lived in the Netherlands before you applied is taken off your maximum. So if you were here for 2 years before your ruling started, your real maximum is shorter than 5 or 8 years.
How much will it actually cost you as a self-employed?
Here’s what your annual net income looks like with and without the 30% ruling, at typical expat salary levels (2026 rates, employee, no other adjustments):
| Gross salary | Net with 30% ruling | Net without | Annual drop | Monthly drop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| €60,000 | €52.496 | €44.093 | €8.403 | €700 |
| €80.000 | €66.112 | €53.913 | €12.199 | €1.017 |
| €100,000 | €79.046 | €62.711 | €16.335 | €1.361 |
| €150.000 | €109.910 | €85.818 | €24.092 | €2.008 |
What you lose besides the tax-free allowance
The salary cut is the biggest impact but the 30% ruling has three other benefits that quietly disappear at the same time. Many expats only find out about these after their ruling has ended.
- Special tax status for your savings and investments
While your ruling is active, you don’t pay Dutch tax on your savings, investments, second home, or shares abroad. When the ruling ends, all of this becomes taxable in the Netherlands. That can mean a serious extra tax bill, especially if you own property or have a large investment portfolio outside the Netherlands.
- Easy exchange of your foreign driver’s licence
As long as you have the 30% ruling, you can swap most foreign driver’s licences for a Dutch one without taking an exam. Once the ruling ends, that option ends too. Wait too long and you’ll have to do both the theory test and the practical driving test from scratch.
- Tax-free reimbursement of international school fees
While the ruling is active your employer can pay your child’s international school fees tax-free. Once it ends, that money counts as regular salary and gets taxed. For families, this can mean thousands of euros extra in tax per child per year.
Your options when the ruling ends
You have four ways to soften the impact or avoid it. Most expats use a mix of two or three.
- Ask your employer for a gross-up
A gross-up means your employer raises your salary so your take-home pay stays the same. Many companies do this to keep good people. Talk to them before your end date, not after. Bring numbers from this calculator to show exactly what you need.
- Switch to freelance (ZZP)
Going freelance often gives you more take-home pay than a salary, even without the 30% ruling. The main reason: 12.7% of your profit is tax-free thanks to the MKB-winstvrijstelling. The zelfstandigenaftrek adds a small extra benefit but gets smaller each year. This works best if your day rate is €600 or more and you have steady clients. Try the ZZP mode above to see your numbers.
- Plan ahead with your money
A few smart moves before the ruling ends can save thousands per year. Pay extra into your pension while it’s still tax-friendly. Check your savings and investments — these get taxed differently once your special expat status ends. Also review your mortgage, since more of your income becomes taxable.
- Talk to an expat tax advisor
A specialist can review your full situation in about an hour. They tell you exactly what to do and how much you’ll save. A one-time review costs €150 to €400 — far less than what you’ll save. The cheapest option that pays for itself.
Frequently asked questions about the 30% ruling
Can I extend my 30% ruling?
No. The maximum is 5 years (or 8 years for rulings granted before 2024), and there is no way to extend it. The only path back is if you leave the Netherlands and live abroad long enough to qualify again as a new expat but the rules are strict (you need to have lived more than 150 km from the Dutch border for most of the past 2 years before returning). For most people, once it ends, it ends.
Can I keep my 30% ruling if I switch jobs?
Yes, in most cases — if you start your new job within 3 months of leaving the old one. Your new employer has to file a request with the Belastingdienst, and your new salary still has to meet the minimum threshold. The remaining months of your ruling carry over. The handover is simple in clean cases but goes wrong often enough that it’s worth checking before you sign a new contract.
Can I claim the 30% ruling as a freelancer or ZZP’er?
Not as a pure ZZP’er. The 30% ruling only applies to employees on a payroll. If you set up a Dutch BV and put yourself on its payroll as director-shareholder, you can sometimes still use the ruling but the structure has to be right and you have to meet all the regular conditions (salary, expertise, recruited from abroad). This is one of the most common areas where expats need personal advice before they switch.
What happens if I leave the Netherlands before my ruling ends?
Your ruling stops when you stop being a Dutch tax resident. The unused months don’t keep running while you are abroad. If you return within a short period and meet the conditions again, you can sometimes pick up where you left off but the specifics depend on how long you were gone and what you did during that time. Worth a quick check with an advisor before you move.
How does the change from 30% to 27% in 2027 affect me?
From 1 January 2027, the tax-free portion of the ruling drops from 30% to 27%. This applies to most existing rulings, not just new ones, so even if your ruling is still running, your net income will drop a little in 2027. There is a transition rule for some rulings granted before 2024, whether it applies to you depends on your start date and salary level. Use the calculator above to see your before-and-after numbers.
What is a gross-up and how do I negotiate one?
A gross-up is when your employer raises your gross salary so that your net pay stays close to what it was before the ruling ended. To negotiate one: bring concrete numbers from this calculator, show the monthly drop, and ask for a raise that covers most or all of it. Time it before your end date — some companies have a written policy for this, others handle it case by case. Many employers say yes when you ask, especially for people they recruited from abroad.